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The upgrade to Windows 10 has been smooth for most, but some users will always encounter issues. Whether it’s the screen flashing, not being able to connect to the Internet, or the battery draining too quickly, it’s time to resolve these problems. We’ve rounded up the most common and annoying issues that users encounter in Windows 10, along with easy steps to fix them. Don’t downgrade from Windows 10 just yet, your woes could be solved. If you’ve had your own annoying Windows 10 issue that you were able to resolve, please do let us know it in the comments section below. 1. Update Stuck Downloading or Won’t Install Since Windows 10 forces updates on you, it makes it even more frustrating when the Windows Update process doesn’t go smoothly. If one of your updates is stuck during download or is refusing to install, it’s likely that the file is corrupted. In that case, it’s necessary to flush out the update files and start from the top. To do so, press Windows Key + R to open Run and input C:\Windows\SoftwareDistribution\Download and click OK. Next, delete everything inside the folder, but don’t delete the folder itself. You might need to boot into safe mode if some files won’t delete. Once complete, restart your computer and attempt the update process again. If this doesn’t work, check out our guide to resolving Windows Update problems, where you can find other tips that might help. 2. Battery Draining Too Quickly Those of you on portable devices that upgraded to Windows 10 at launch may have found that the new operating system took a hefty toll on your battery life. Intel and Microsoft solved this together, so make sure your drivers are up-to-date and you should find it resolved. If not, you might want to turn attention to some of Windows 10’s new features. Though Cortana, the virtual assistant, can come in very handy, she does impact the battery slightly. If you want to reserve all the power you can, do a system search for Cortana, select the relevant result, then switch Let Cortana respond to Hey Cortana to Off. Windows Update can also have a drain on your battery (and bandwidth), especially now that it can share updates you’ve downloaded with others. To turn this off, press Windows Key + I and then navigate to Update & security > Windows Update > Advanced options > Choose how updates are delivered and move the switch to Off. For even more battery saving advice, along with details on how to make use of the handy Battery Saver feature, be sure to read our guide on optimizing battery life in Windows 10. 3. Default App Choices Have Changed Did you upgrade to Windows 10 and find that your images weren’t opening in your favorite app anymore? Or that your browser had defaulted to Microsoft Edge? For whatever reason, Windows 10 isn’t good at remembering what programs you’d chosen to open specific file types. Though it’s a pain to reconfigure them all, it’s easy to change your default apps. First, press Windows Key + I and select System. Then, from the left-hand navigation, choose Default apps. Here, you can change your default app for your photos, videos, and more. If you want more refinement than this settings page offers, like being able to change the program for each file type or protocol, be sure to read our guide on how to quickly fix file type associations. First, press Windows Key + I and select System. Then, from the left-hand navigation, choose Default apps. Here, you can change your default app for your photos, videos, and more. If you want more refinement than this settings page offers, like being able to change the program for each file type or protocol, be sure to read our guide on how to quickly fix file type associations. 4. Wi-Fi Connection Not Discoverable If your system is no longer detecting your Wi-Fi connection, this is likely due to VPN software that you have installed. It can also impact some Ethernet connections. Your first port of call would be to go to your VPN software’s website and update to the latest version, one compatible with Windows 10, as this might solve the issue. If this doesn’t work, open an administrative Command Prompt by pressing Windows Key + X and selecting Command Prompt (Admin). Then input the following two lines, pressing Enter after each: reg delete HKCR\CLSID\{988248f3-a1ad-49bf-9170-676cbbc36ba3} /f netcfg -v -u dni_dne If this doesn’t work, the issue might be driver related, rather than VPN. For this, system search device manager and select the relevant result. In the new window, expand Network adapters. Then right-click your wireless adapter and select Update Driver Software…. Still without a connection? See our further tips in our guide to fixing your wireless Internet connection. 5. Touchpad Not Working If your touchpad isn’t working, let’s start with some simple steps to see if it’s actually enabled. First, check your keyboard to see if there’s a function button that turns the touchpad off and on. This will vary depending on your device, but it’ll usually be represented by an icon on one of the F# keys. If this doesn’t work, press Windows Key + I, select Devices > Mouse & touchpad > Additional mouse options. A new window will open and from here you need to click the tab which is furthest to the right, likely called Device Settings. Underneath Devices, select your touchpad and ensure it’s not disabled. If it is, then click the Enable button. Failing this, press Windows Key + X and select Device Manager. Then expand Mice and other pointing devices, right-click your touchpad and select Update Driver Software…. You could also navigate to the manufacturer’s website and download your drivers that way instead. Now that your touchpad is hopefully working again, learn how to get the most from your touchpad in Windows 10, courtesy of our comprehensive guide. 6. Can’t Install or Update Store Apps If you’re having trouble installing or updating apps within the Store, you might need to clear the cache. This is really easy to do. First, press Windows Key + R to open Run. Input WSReset.exe and click OK. A blank Command Prompt window will open, but don’t worry, it is working away. Eventually it’ll close and the Store will open, hopefully with your issues resolved. 7. Microsoft Office Files Don’t Open If you’re trying to open Microsoft Office files and getting errors like “file is corrupt and cannot be opened”, “unable to start correctly”, and “experience an error trying to open the file”, it might be due to problems with the Protected View feature. To overcome this, press CTRL + X and then select Command Prompt (Admin). Input the following command, but replace the Office number with whatever version you’re using, and then hit ENTER on your keyboard: icacls "%programfiles%\Microsoft Office 15" /grant *S-1-15-2-1:(OI)(CI)RX You should now be able to open your Office files. If not, try repairing the installation. For this, do a system search for programs and features and select the relevant result. Find Office in the list, right-click it and then press Change. Select Online Repair and then click Repair. 8. Flickering or Flashing Screen If your screen is flickering or flashing when it didn’t before, it’s likely due to an incompatible application or driver. Norton AntiVirus, iCloud, and IDT Audio are all programs that are known to cause this problem. Update them and see if it fixes the problem, else you might need to uninstall then reinstall. On Norton’s part, they have an official support page to help. Alternatively, you might need to remove your display driver and reinstall, or rollback to a previous version. Windows 10 automatically updates your drivers and it might be that it’s forcing an incompatible version on you. For detailed steps on how to do this, along with other advice, read our guide on how to fix Windows 10’s flashing screen problem. How Do You Solve a Windows 10 Problem? An operating system will never be completely problem-free, but hopefully we’ve been able to resolve some of the most annoying issues that have been cropping up in Windows 10. Your first exercise should always be to update the associated drivers or the program itself, just in case Windows Update hasn’t handled this for you automatically. It might be that you’re running an older version that isn’t compatible with Windows 10.

Safe Mode is the famous (or perhaps infamous) method of opening up a limited version of Windows to get around bugs or avoid viruses while troubleshooting problems and finding solutions. Traditionally, you could boot into Safe Mode in Windows by starting up and pressing F8 when the operating system first loads. However, Microsoft‘s latest iteration of Windows doesn’t follow this rule, so let’s go over how to boot into Safe mode in Windows 10. Which safe mode do you want? On Windows 10 there are a few different types of Safe Mode you can choose from, so it’s important to know what they do and which you need. Safe Mode: This is the basic version that strips away all unnecessary programs and only autostarts a few chosen files and drivers to get the basic system running. It doesn’t allow for many advanced features, including connections with other computers or devices. That makes the computer safer from malware that may be able to move through local networks (like the WannaCry ransomware appeared capable of doing). Safe Mode with Networking: This is a mode that adds on the necessary drivers and features to access networks. It’s not quite as safe, but it’s useful if you only have one computer and need to get online to look for help or see if connections to other devices still work. Safe Mode with Command Prompt: This option may not be available on all versions of Windows 10, but if it is you can enter this mode to bring up a big command prompt screen. This is good for more badly damaged operating systems or technical work where you know the precise command lines necessary to find a problem or launch a specific service. Make sure you know how to use the Command Prompt before accessing this mode. Method 1: From the login screen or when frozen If you are still on the login screen, this is an effective way to quickly boot into Safe Mode — and it may also work if Windows has suddenly frozen or programs like Outlook have become unresponsive. Step 1: From the login screen, hold down “Shift,” and then click the power button on the screen (not your physical power button on the PC or laptop). A small box should pop up with a few different shut down options. Choose the “Restart” option. Step 2: Windows should revert to a window that says “Choose an option” (it may take a little time so don’t try anything until you see this). From here you will need to go through a few different menus to find the right restart option. First choose “Troubleshoot,” then “Advanced options,” then “Startup Settings,” and then “Restart.” Step 3: Windows should now open up to a new window that says “Startup Settings” and includes a list of different options. The first “Safe Mode” options should be “4,” with the other Safe Mode options following after. Press the number key for the Safe Mode that you want. Method 2: When you’re already in Windows 10 There’s a slightly more roundabout way of booting into Safe Mode from Windows 10. You’ll find this method helpful if you want to shut down safely and restart Windows while preserving as much data as possible — without needing complex command lines. Image used with permission by copyright holder Step 1: Head to your Start menu, and then choose or search for Settings. Step 2: In Settings, look for Update & Security and select it. This will open a new window with a sidebar on the left side. In this sidebar, look for Recovery, and select that. Step 3: Under the Advanced startup option, you should see a Restart now button. Select it and this will take you to the same selection screen as the first method of entering Safe Mode. Step 4: Move through these menus by selecting Troubleshoot, then Advanced options, then Startup Settings, and then Restart. Step 5: Give Windows time to load your selection of Startup settings. The Safe Mode options start at number 4. Press the number key for the Safe Mode you want. Starting from a blank screen Image used with permission by copyright holder Sometimes your PC will shut down before you can even reach a login screen, or it will refuse to show anything but a blank screen. If you can only get a blank or black screen, your steps to enter Safe Mode are a bit different. Here’s what you should try: Step 1: Press the power button once to turn on your computer. Now, as soon as your computer gives any sign that it’s on — preferably a manufacturer logo on the screen, but if not, go with spinning fans — hold the power button down again for 10 seconds. You’re giving Windows 10 an SOS signal with these steps. Step 2: Repeat Step 1. Step 3: For the third time, press the power button once to turn the PC on, and at the first sign Windows has started, hold the power button down once more for 10 seconds until your device has turned off. Step 4: Now press the power button a final time. Windows should have received the signal, and will boot up in recovery mode. From here, as before, select Troubleshoot > Advanced Options > Startup Settings > Restart. Then press the 4 key or a similar option for your desired Safe Mode. Exiting Safe Mode Once you fix your Windows problem, restoring the device’s original settings will require a few more steps. Follow the ones below to get back to your standard Windows 10 experience. Note: You can also boot into Safe Mode from Windows by reversing the second part of Step 2. Step 1: Start by clicking on the Start button. In the search box on your screen, enter MSConfig and click Enter. The computer will then go to the System Configuration feature automatically. Step 2: Go to the Boot option. Under Boot options and on the lower left of the screen, you should see several options for Safe boot. Select one of those. Ensure that Safe boot is not checked. Step 3: Now that Safe boot is unselected, choose OK, and opt to restart Windows 10. You can restart the computer as you normally would. From there, it should reopen with its full Windows capabilities.

Windows Server customers often share with us the challenges of navigating rapid changes in recent years. Many of their IT estates have expanded to support growth, while teams are often changing, with talent coming and going. You may find your organization in a similar situation, with a sprawled IT estate that includes a mix of legacy and new applications and hardware. This can leave room for potential security vulnerabilities and compliance gaps, but also opportunities to optimize. We are committed to supporting you through the next stages of optimization and growth in your organization, which starts with a secure IT foundation. Here are four best practices to keep your Windows Server estate secure and up-to-date: 1. Watch for update notifications and have a strategy to apply the latest security patches A critical but often overlooked best practice is having a strategy to apply the latest security patches that are released. Our team continuously monitors and listens to customer feedback on any issues they have encountered and creates patches to address these. These are released on the second Tuesday of every month (known as Patch Tuesday). Keeping your various systems up-to-date with the latest patches will secure workloads and optimize day-to-day performance and operations. Learn more about best practices for software updates. However, we know that patching also usually means rebooting and ultimately downtime for your workloads. If you are in Microsoft Azure, you can take advantage of Hotpatch, which allows you to keep your Windows Server virtual machines on Azure up-to-date without rebooting, enabling higher availability with faster and more secure delivery of updates. 2. Get deeper visibility and management capabilities at no additional cost Many Windows Server customers might be familiar with many of the native Windows Server Microsoft Management Consoles (MMC). Windows Admin Center is the modern evolution of “in-box” management tools such as Server Manager and MMC. It has become the solution for managing Windows Server infrastructure, giving you deep management, troubleshooting, configuration, and maintenance capabilities over your server clusters. It can be locally deployed with no cloud dependency or can be used within the Azure portal through direct integration, enabling you to carry over the simple and familiar UI when you decide to start adopting the cloud. Learn more in the Windows Admin Center documentation or download it today for free. 3. Check for end of support versions and prepare to modernize Most organizations are likely to have a mix of Windows Server versions that support a variety of applications. Each version of Windows Server is backed by 10 years of support (5 years for mainstream support and 5 years for extended support) that include regular security updates, per the Microsoft lifecycle policy. After the end of support date, a version and its workloads will be vulnerable as they will no longer receive regular security updates. Windows Server 2012/R2 is the upcoming version that will reach the end of support on October 10, 2023. With this in mind, a critical step towards optimizing performance and tightening security should be to check for Windows Server 2012/R2 versions, which will reach end of support soon. This can be done with various, built-in tools such as Server Manager, PowerShell, or at-scale with tools from Azure such as Azure Migrate or Azure Arc. Additionally, mapping out application and hardware dependencies on Windows Server should be done to determine the next best step: Upgrading to the latest version such as Windows Server 2022 will provide the latest security, performance, and application modernization innovation. Learn more about how to perform in-place upgrades. If you are unable to upgrade by the end-of-support date, you can continue to stay secure on current versions by getting extended security updates1 for up to three years free in Azure or purchasing them for deployment on-premises. 4. Utilize cloud-native services for enhanced security and compliance anywhere Whether your organization has migrated to Azure or is just starting to consider the cloud, here are some steps you can take now, to enhance your security with Microsoft: Already in Azure: To maximize your security coverage in Azure, be sure to check your secure score and improve it by enabling services such as Microsoft Defender for Cloud, Microsoft Sentinel (cloud-native SIEM), and Azure Network Security. Have workloads on-premises: Extend Microsoft Defender for Servers to your on-premises Windows Servers by connecting them to Azure Arc. Ready to migrate to Azure: When you are ready to migrate workloads to Azure, your first step can be an assessment with Azure Migrate or getting expert help and support through the Azure Migration and Modernization Program. Learn more We hope these best practices serve as starting points to help you increase security and optimize the performance of your IT platform, so you can focus on supporting business growth. Be sure to explore the resources below for further information: Learn more about capabilities and offers for Windows Server on Azure. Watch our recent webinar on-demand titled “Optimizing Windows and SQL Server Security in Azure.” Register for our upcoming webinar titled “Cloud Migration Stories: Windows and SQL Server with Azure” on March 29, 2023, at 10 AM Pacific Time. Take the recently available Windows Server Hybrid Administrator Certification to apply your current Windows Server knowledge and learn how to apply it in the current state of hybrid cloud computing. Learn more about your options for Windows Server 2012/R2 end of support. Join the Windows Server Tech Community for regular Ask Me Anything (AMA) sessions.

Windows 11 was released for the general public starting October 5, 2021. The rollout through Windows update has started to the eligible devices and continue until 2022. Windows 11: A new era for the PC begins today | Windows Experience Blog Introducing Windows 11 | Windows Experience Blog What’s coming in Windows 11 Accessibility | Windows Experience Blog DOWNLOAD PC HEALTH CHECK APP (aka.ms) Windows 11 available on October 5 | Windows Experience Blog Download Windows 11 (microsoft.com) Windows 11 known issues and notifications | Microsoft Docs Resources for Windows 11 on Microsoft Community: The following Forum Articles from our Article Authors at Microsoft Community would help to get started with Windows 11, including upgrading manually and a deeper dive at the new features incoming with Windows 11: List of Changed or removed features/functionalities in Windows 11 Frequently Asked Questions: Windows 11 - Microsoft Community Windows 11 Keyboard Shortcuts - Microsoft Community How to Upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11 Upgrade from Windows 10 to Windows 11 using ISO file Troubleshoot Windows 11 upgrade and Installation errors How to Reset Windows 11 How to make clean install of Windows 11 Convert an existing Windows 10 Installation from Legacy BIOS to UEFI (microsoft.com) How to: Complete the Windows 11 Out of Box Experience Downgrade from Windows 11 to Windows 10 Forum articles on Features in Windows 11: The Forum Articles on Features in Windows 11 are as under: How to login automatically to Windows 11 How to: Use Snap Layouts and Snap groups in Windows 11 Widgets in Windows 11 How to Perform a Backup Using File History in Windows 11 or Windows 10 How to create a Local account in Windows 11 Get Started with Chat for Microsoft Teams in Windows 11 - Preview How to try out the new Office 365 Experience on Windows 11 How to Create a System Image in Windows 11 - 2021 Edition How to Connect or Pair Wireless and Bluetooth Devices in Windows 11 Add Clock to the second Display in Windows 11 - Microsoft Community Support Documents from Microsoft Support: Ways to install Windows 11 Installing Windows 11 on devices that don't meet minimum system requirements Pin apps and folders to the desktop or taskbar (microsoft.com) How to use the taskbar in Windows 11 (microsoft.com) Customize the taskbar notification area (microsoft.com) How to open notification center and quick settings (microsoft.com) You can always start a new post for any questions or assistance regarding Windows 11.

In SQL Server environments, including on-premises, Azure SQL Database, or SQL Managed Instance, unexpected failovers can sometimes leave Availability Group roles out of sync. When this happens, the new primary replica might take over while the original primary faces issues, leading to possible data discrepancies if transactions were in progress or uncommitted. To recover or validate any data loss, it’s essential to resync or validate the new primary with the old primary as soon as it’s back online. This ensures any lost transactions are reconciled. If critical data was missed during the failover, it must be recovered and merged to maintain database consistency. This blog outlines the steps to recover or validate any data loss using SQL Server Database Compare Utility. To simulate this situation with the SQL Server Box product, two SQL Server VMs were set up on the same subnet, Always-On HA was turned on for both instances, a simplified WideWorldImportersDW (WWIDW) database was restored and set to full recovery mode. After creating the certificates and logins/users required for Availability Groups (AGs) without domains, an asynchronous commit AG was created (it needed to be asynchronous, since we cannot simulate transaction loss with a synchronous AG). Using a transaction simulator, many transactions per second were performed into the primary database. During this activity, the primary instance was stopped, which created a group of committed transactions that had not been replicated to the secondary. The goal of this post is to recover those missing transactions. After stopping sql1, you need to open the dashboard on sql2, because SSMS can no longer connect to sql1 to update the status: Opening the Failover wizard – you see a warning about data loss: The wizard really wants to make sure you know there may be data loss: Click through to get the results: The dashboard for sql2 has the current cluster status: To capture the state of the new primary, immediately create a database snapshot, ideally before opening it up to new application connections: (In this case we were using sql1 in the transaction simulator and not the sqlistener, so no transactions will be written to sql2). Restart the sql1 instance. On refresh, you will see that the old primary now has a state of Not Synchronizing / In Recovery. Create a database snapshot on the old primary (sql1) before making the old primary the secondary (otherwise, when the old primary synchronizes as a secondary, the missing transactions are lost😞 At this point you can Resume Data Movement to make the old primary a secondary. It takes a minute for the old primary to roll back lost transactions and resynchronize with the new primary and the old primary should now be a synchronizing secondary; We can now use the SQL Server Database Compare (SSDBC) application to check if we lost any transactions between the snapshot on the new primary (sql2 – the source) and the snapshot on the old primary (sql1 – the target). Refer to the SSDBC documentation for how to set it up. In this case we have 313 hash differences (updates) and 423 missing (inserts) rows – note that we have no deletes that were not replicated because of timing of the simulated transaction cascading deletes (deletes stop if we exceed the configured percentage until the inserts/updates catch up): Looking at the SSDBC folder in My Documents – we can see a SQL script file for each table in the database, with numbers in front to indicate the order you should run them in (based on foreign key references). If the database has DRI configured, you may need to combine scripts if the referenced table has an identity column and if you have the identity value capture option turned on. In the same folder are log files which contain more details about the comparison. Opening one of the files, you can see update and insert statements. The update statements are written to try to be as safe as possible by checking (with additional conditions in the where clause) that the column value hasn’t been subsequently changed on the new primary. After running all the change scripts on WWIDW on sql2 and then re-running SSDBC on WWIDW on sql2 (not the snapshot) and the sql1 snapshot – we see that the databases are now the same (note that this will only work on a static new primary); Note that we could also use the tablediff utility or SSDT to generate a differences script. The SSDBC download package contains a PowerShell script to make running the comparison operations across many servers/databases easier by making it Excel workbook driven. You can list your source and target servers and databases in the provided Servers.xlsx workbook and run the BulkDatabaseRecovery.ps1 script.

You can do many things with docker. Install software that doesn't natively run on Windows for one. I use it to test Discourse a popular forum software. To install Docker on Windows, follow these steps: Prerequisites Windows 10 64-bit: Pro, Enterprise, or Education (Build 15063 or later) or Windows 11. WSL 2: Windows Subsystem for Linux version 2 must be enabled. Installation Steps Download Docker Desktop: Go to the Docker Desktop for Windows page. Click on Download for Windows. Install Docker Desktop: Run the downloaded installer. Follow the installation wizard's instructions. During installation, ensure that the option to enable WSL 2 is selected. Enable WSL 2 (if not already enabled): Open PowerShell as an administrator and run: wsl --set-default-version 2 Install a Linux distribution from the Microsoft Store (e.g., Ubuntu). Start Docker Desktop: After installation, launch Docker Desktop from the Start menu. You may need to log in or create a Docker account. Verify Installation: Open PowerShell or Command Prompt and run: docker --version This command should return the installed Docker version. Run a Test Container: To ensure everything is working, run: docker run hello-world This command downloads a test image and runs it, displaying a confirmation message. Additional Configuration You may want to configure Docker settings such as resource allocation (CPU, memory) via the Docker Desktop settings menu. Troubleshooting If you encounter issues, ensure that virtualization is enabled in your BIOS settings and that your Windows version meets the requirements. If you have any questions post them and I will try to answer them.